~BICYCLE FILM FESTIVAL/Dear Velo/opening pix

as part of the BICYCLE FILM FESTIVAL 2008
PARTNER & SPADE PRESENTS:
‘Dear Velo’ – a group show curated by KATHARINE BARTHELM & BRENDT BARBUR – featuring over 14 artists
the show runs MAY 29 – JUNE 2, 2008 (12-7PM)
40 GREAT JONES STREET near THE BOWERY – LOWER EAST SIDE
for more info, see: Dear Velo

Dear Velo bike logo
BIKE BY MAX KNIGHT – ‘Dear Velo’ poster image/courtesy: BFF 2008

A LOT OF – PIX !! – FROM THE ‘DEAR VELO’ OPENING – THURS, MAY 29, 2008
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH

Velo # 1
BRENDT BARBUR, Founding Director, BICYCLE FILM FESTIVAL
see: BICYCLE FILM FESTIVAL

Velo # 2
. . . in the the right place, at the right time.
from left: artist/musician GERMAN, from Argentina, BUENOS AIRES to be exact; photographer MATTIAS WESTFALK from SWEDEN; BRENDT BARBUR, the Bicycle Film Festival’s Founding Director; and, SATOSHI ICHIYANAGI, Producer, and the TOKYO SECRETARIAT for the BICYCLE FILM FESTIVAL in Japan !! the BFF hits TOKYO – SEPT 5-7, 2008
German just arrived in NYC, yesterday, and MATTIAS WESTFALK & SATOSHI ICHIYANAGI just arrived today, Thursday, MAY 29, 2008.

Velo # 3
from left, LOUISE INGALLS STURGES, one of the 3 woman artists in the show, (she did the tiny tricycle, see below), and with her, KATHARINE BARTHELME, a co-curator, with BRENDT BARBUR, of ‘Dear Velo’.

Velo # 4
KATHARINE BARTHELME with BENEDICT RADCLIFFE. London-based design artist, BENEDICT RADCLIFFE has 3 amazing custom built bikes in the show.

Velo # 5
KATHARINE BARTHELME has a sweet tattoo tucked under her bangles !!

Velo # 6
currently Santa Cruz based artist, filmmaker & photographer PATRICK TREFZ has a film clip & a ‘rake’ bike – in the show. and, at the right – MAX KNIGHT – whose sneaker-wheeled bike is literally – the ‘poster child’ for the show !!
– shows us his ‘grill’ !!

Velo # 7
bike artist – MAX KNIGHT

Velo # 10
JOHN-TAKI THEODORACOPULOS – contributed the beautiful bronze bike to the show.

Velo # 11
ASSSIA BAUDI di SELVE, a journalist/writer, from Rome.

Velo # 12
MAX NIGHT’S ‘sneaker’ bike in the storefront window. love the color he chose for the bike frame.

Velo # 13
detail, MAX KNIGHT ‘sneaker’ bike – yo, are those calf-length black socks, is that a political statement ? . . . though, guess they’d have to be ‘dress-style’ calf length black socks – ? – ya gotta be a New Yorker for this one.

Velo # 14
JOHN-TAKI THEODORACOPULOS, New York, ‘Bronze Bike’, 2008, sprayed bronze and metal.

Velo # 15
London-based BENEDICT RADCLIFFE with his multi-color, ‘Stay Safe’, 2007, bike. metal and spray paint.

Velo # 17
BENEDICT RADCLIFFE, London, ‘Still the One’, 2005, metal, circular saw and paint. this bike hung from the wall, just under the ceiling – so that you could unwittingly, and many did, stand underneath the lethal looking back wheel !! while many others watched and hoped it was attached securely.

Velo # 18
detail, BENEDICT RADCLIFFE, London. ‘Still the One’.

Velo # 19
a better view of how it hung from the wall, just below the ceiling, BENEDICT RADCLIFFE, London. ‘Still the One’.

Velo # 20
BENEDICT RADCLIFFE, ‘Still the One’ – an inspired mounting.

Velo # 22
that’s PAUL RACHMAN, on the left, under the circular saw back wheel – with with LIT’S ERIK FOSS.
yo, bring on the Docs !!!
PAUL RACHMAN made the cult classic – ‘AMERICAN HARDCORE’ – a 2006 SUNDANCE official/entry film that chronicles, in stark black & white, with images that match the music – ‘The History of American Punk Rock 1980-86’. Directed by Paul Rachman/Written by Steven Blush.
check it out !! AMERICAN HARDCORE/trailer
ERIK FOSS has a small collage & paint on canvas piece in the ‘JOYRIDE’ back room of the ‘Dear Velo’ show. (either Erik’s hired a P.R. firm or LIT is really hot !! – it got mentioned twice this weekend, once in PAGE SIX Magazine, in the same sentence as MISCHA BARTON, & once on PAGE SIX, itself – way to go – E-R-I-K !!) LIT was also the scene of the afterparty for the ‘Dear Velo’ show – with ERIK himself, & PAUL SEVIGNY doing the DJ honors.

Velo # 22
BENEDICT RADCLIFFE’S ‘Long Bike’, 2007, his 3rd bike in the show, and a big fave – with the audience.

velo # 23
art world prince & documentary photographer, IVORY SERRA also made the opening.

Velo # 70
a selection of documentary photos in the back room – ‘JOYRIDE’

Velo # 71 A
black & white photo from the collection of BRENDT BARBUR

Velo # 71
local talent – FELIPE !! Felipe Robayo – aka the King of New York – was featured in a film that played on Saturday – ‘KING OF SKITCH’. Directed by DANIEL LEEB.

Velo 72
also in the ‘JOYRIDE’ – a new piece by ERIK FOSS, paint and collage on canvas.

Velo # 73
detail of the bottom edge, ERIK FOSS in the ‘Dear Velo’ – ‘JOYRIDE’.

Velo # 74
detail of the collage, ERIK FOSS in the ‘JOYRIDE’.

Velo - Chombo
CHOMBO, checking out the backroom’s ‘JOYRIDE’. CHOMBO has a short stop animation film, ‘THE TOOLBOX – SPARE PARTS RACE’ in the Festival.

Velo # 24
but, back to the main event – the bikes !! this is the small tricycle by LOUISE INGALLS STRURGES, one of 3 women bike artists – in the show !! it’s called ‘Retricycled (for Marcel)’, 2008. Found bike, toy bike and synthetic moss.

velo # 25
AMY FRANCESCHINI, San Francisco. ‘Victory Gardens Bike Barrow’, 2007.

Velo # 26
BRAD BAKER, ZACH BLACKBURN & AL ZUGER, New York. ‘The Best Little BBQ Bike this side of Mason Dixon’, 2008.

Velo # 27
foreground, ‘The Best Little BBQ’ bike, and on the back wall – GRACE YUNG TING TENG, from Dallas – ‘Untitled’ , 2008 – a cardboard, paper and metal bike.

Velo 28
GRACE YUNG TING TENG, Dallas. ‘Untitled’, 2008 – cardboard, paper, metal.

Velo   29
BEN WILSON, London. ‘Swarovski Lowrider Bike’, 2007. Bike parts, rubber and Swarovski Crystals.

≈Velo # 30
detail, BEN WILSON, London. ‘Swarovski Lowrider Bike’, 2007.

Velo # 31
PATRICK TREFZ, Santa Cruz. ‘Rake Bike’, 2007.
Bike, rake & accompanying film.

Velo # 32
MADSAKI, Tokyo. ‘Untitled’, 2008. bike parts, plastic and paint.

Velo # 33
we catch a glimpse of a tall bike !!

Velo # 34
yes, its a ‘BMX Tall Bike’, 2007 made by the BLACK LABEL BIKE CLUB, New York. the guys from Black Label told us: Tall bikes actually go way back to the late 1800’s when they were used to light city gas lamps – the rider bearing a torch.

Velo # 35
detail, BLACK LABEL BIKE CLUB, New York, ‘BMX Tall Bike’.

Velo # 36
“PIRANHA”, detail. BLACK LABEL BIKE CLUB, ‘BMX Tall Bike’.

Velo # 36A
BLACK LABEL BIKE CLUB, New York. ‘Wood Bike’, 2007.
wood and rubber.

Velo # 37
another tall bike – this one by the ZENGA BROS. out of Toronto. ‘Tall Horse’, 2008 – with photographs on the wall by BRIAN VERNOR.

Velo # 38
detail, ZENGA BROS. – ‘Tall Horse’, 2008.

velo # 39
detail, seat. ZENGA BROS. – ‘Tall Horse’, 2008.

Velo # 41
PHIL FROST, New York. ‘Untitled’, 2007. Bike parts, wood and paint.

Velo # 42
detail. PHIL FROST.

Velo # 43
and last, but not least, though maybe … least – a ‘celebrity’ bike contributed by TOM SACHS. TOM SACHS, New York, ‘Waffle Bike’, 2008 – it looked like he told his studio assistants – throw me up – a custom bike – like I would make – If I actually made one. It was there for the opening, but then quickly disappeared, …said the gallery assistant – “his gallery wanted it back – it’s like worth a half a million dollars”.

Velo # 44
TOM SACHS, New York. ‘Waffle Bike’, 2008.

velo # 45
detail, TOM SACHS, ‘Waffle Bike’, 2008. – the best part was the book at the handlebars & the page it was opened to..

Velo # 46
detail, TOM SACHS, ‘Waffle Bike’, 2008. – “151 – Having a talent is not enough: one also requires your permission for it – right, my friends?” & “152 – ‘Where the tree of knowledge stands, there is always Paradise’: thus speak the oldest and the youngest serpents.”

Velo #48
from Canada & The Winking Circle – BENNY ZENGA

Velo # 49
from left: GREG of BLACK LABEL BIKE CLUB, New York, BENNY ZENGA of the WINKING CIRCLE, (out of Toronto, or at least Southern Ontario?) & West Coast photographer, BRIAN VERNOR.

velo # 50
GREG of BLACK LABEL BIKE CLUB & MAX KNIGHT

Velo # 51
IAN – a tall bike rider with BLACK LABEL BIKE CLUB, New York.

Velo # 52
JPL, BLACK LABEL BIKE CLUB
. . . “Black Label Bike Club is an international freak/mutant bicycle organization specialing in tall bikes and choppers. Started in 1992 by JACOB HOULE and PER HANSON, as Hard Times Bike Club in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the club has grown to include a chapter in New York, Reno, Nevada, Austin, Texas & Stockholm, Sweden, and a nomad chapter loosely based out of New Orleans known as Nowhere. The Black Label Bike Club is credited with being the first “outlaw bicycle club”, the originators of tall bike jousting, and one of the main contributors to the rise of the tall bike culture.” – WIKIPEDIA
& watch, it. again – BLACK LABEL – Bike Kill, BROOKLYN,NY 2004

Velo # 53
BLACK LABEL BIKE CLUB, New York

Velo # 54
TAARNA GRIMSLEY, (at least, that’s what she said – her last name was !!) out of Bed Stuy. one of only 2 girl Tall Bike riders – in NYC !! their club is called Cutthroats and it is 6 yrs. old.

Velo # 55 A
TAARNA with her tall bike.

Velo # 58
a better view of her custom built, gold bike, with some vintage Raleigh frame parts.

Velo # 56
TAARNA GRIMSLEY, Cutthroats Bicycle Club, Brooklyn, New York.

Velo # 58
once they get on their bikes, they just scramble up the frame really really fast – & – they really take off !! – it’s impossible to catch them – they go very very fast. that’s TAARNA, in the distance already, down the center lane – you can catch them riding around, in Williamsburg & sometimes, like tonight – they even hit the big island. Manhattan.

Velo # 59
the distinctive upper window lights of ANTHOLOGY FILM ARCHIVES, on 2ND AVE – home to the annual BICYCLE FILM FESTIVAL, founded by BRENDT BARBUR, and now in its 8th year !!

Velo # 60
the bikes lining up outside LIT. pretty close by, also on 2ND AVE, for the afterparty.

ALL PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH. NEW YORK CITY. MAY 29, 2008

BICYCLE FILM FESTIVAL